CIOs to cash in on e-commerce

The number of chief information officers using electronic commerce is expected to more than double in the coming year, despite security concerns, according to a survey by IDG Research.

The survey, commissioned by CIO magazine and Tandem Computers, includes responses from 360 magazine readers last month.

Findings in the survey note that 20 percent of respondents currently conduct business through electronic commerce and that figure is expected to reach 48.7 percent in the coming year.

Among the reasons CIO cited for using electronic commerce included a long-term strategic value, according to 98 percent of survey participants. Meanwhile, 89 percent said they expected to use e-commerce to keep up with the competition. Sixty percent of participants noted short-term financial gains.

The survey also found that 65 percent of the respondents who either use or plan to use electronic commerce believed security issues could make the launch of such a program difficult.

Among survey participants who have no plans to use electronic commerce, 82 percent said security was a concern.

Eighty percent of respondents also reported that they track activity on their Web sites. And the survey found that 68.7 percent would store the information in their databases for future use.

Armed with the database information, nearly 30 percent of those responding to the survey said they planned to use it for one-to-one marketing.